Using ARM loan is better than 401k to pay for college. Q: My husband and I are 56 and 55 respectively. We have 3 college tuitions and 2 of 3 weddings done, and are now thinking of taking advantage of the great prices for a vacation condo. We have enough cash for the 20 percent [...]
Job seekers are facing a tough market that doesn’t appear to be getting any better. In September, the U.S. unemployment rate was 9.1 percent, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Dig deeper. The real unemployment rate (U-6) is closer to 16.5 percent. About one in six people are unemployed or underemployed. For job seekers, here [...]
On Monday, October 24, 2011, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced major changes to the Homeowners Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). The old version of HARP, which had been in place for about two years, assisted 900,000 homeowners in their efforts to refinance their mortgages. However a report from PR Newswire highlights two major problems with [...]
You might be able to lower your mortgage interest rate with an FHA loan. Q: I was listening to your radio show on WSB Radio this past Sunday. The caller had a mortgage with one of the big banks and he wanted to get his interest rate lowered. He stated he wasn’t behind in his [...]
Buying a foreclosed or short sale home when you are downsizing. Q: We would like to down-size and are looking at a community with a lot of short-sales and foreclosures. Is there anyway to lessen the expected protracted period of waiting to hear from the bank for purchase approval? We can make an all cash [...]
Did you join real estate expert Ilyce Glink on the last Live Chat? If you missed out, here’s an excerpt with common questions about buying a home, buying rental property, and deciding whether to buying vs. renting Sign up for the next Live Chat on the Equifax Facebook page. Q: Why should I buy instead of [...]
Bailout of Greece and problems in the Eurozone continued this week. This week, the Dow was up 422 points, ending at 12,231 by the close of business on Friday. I can't remember the last time we were over 12,000. The reason for the sudden investor enthusiasm? Euphoria over the latest Eurozone deal. Leaders across Europe [...]
In this series, real estate and mortgage expert Steve Cook takes a look at falling home values: the causes, the effects, why home prices are still falling and what needs to happen to see home values improve. Yesterday, I looked at housing market predictions and asked why people aren’t buying houses despite prices and rates [...]
In this series, real estate and mortgage expert Steve Cook takes a look at housing market predictions for falling home values: the causes, the effects, why home prices are still falling, and what needs to happen to see home values improve. “The hurrier I go, the behinder I get,” said the White Rabbit in Alice [...]
Are cost of living expenses a part of your retirement planning? They should be. An article in a recent issue of AARP The Magazine absolutely shocked me. It listed the most affordable places to retire. Yet Maine, which was on the list, has a property tax rate of 14.53 percent! With the average cost of [...]
